Weekly News Recap: October 27, 2017

Dr. Anne Fanning Binder (left) of Edmonton is invested by Lt.-Gov. Lois Mitchell into the Alberta Order of Excellence during a ceremony at Government House in Edmonton on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. IAN KUCERAK / IAN KUCERAK/POSTMEDIA

The mediocre have a very narrow perception of reality, and in turn, their lives. They see things as they are and not how they can be. -- Aditya Mehta

Nominations

AFP Canada Board of Directors 2018 Nominations (AFP) *Nominations are now open through November 3, 2017. You can access the nominations form here. The new AFP Canada Board of Directors was formed earlier this year in April. The Board has been working hard on behalf of all the AFP members in Canada, and AFP Canada is now a formal, incorporated entity [...]. The inaugural Board has terms through December 31, 2017. 10/20/17*

News

Mike Geiger Named President and CEO of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Congratulations to AFP and to Mike Geiger. Welcome to AFP Mike. Also, a huge thank you to to the search committee, chaired by Bob Carter and to AFP's chair of the board, Ann Hale. "The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the world’s leading association for individuals and organizations that supports charitable institutions, is pleased to announce that after an extensive search, it has named Mike Geiger, MBA, CPA, as its new president and chief executive officer, effective November 1, 2017." 10/25/17

St. Albert wins provincial tourism award (St. Albert Gazette) ST. ALBERT STORYCongrats! "The St. Albert Farmers’ Market and the St. Albert and District Chamber of Commerce teamed up to win a provincial tourism award. Travel Alberta presented the award Tuesday for St. Albert’s efforts in sustainable tourism." 10/25/17

RDC opens new Makerspace, first of its kind in Central Alberta (Red Deer Express) RED DEER EXPRESSI love that this space is open for the community to use. Make on! "The first of its kind in Central Alberta, Red Deer College’s Makerspace includes bright and spacious workspaces and free access to a wide variety of high and low tech maker equipment." 10/24/17

MAKE WAY—THE CAMPAIGN FOR NSCC (Halifax Magazine) HALIFAX STORYCongrats on your launch! "Make Way—The Campaign for NSCC is a $25-million province-wide fundraiser aiming to improve access to education across Nova Scotia [...]. Now launching publicly across NSCC’s 13 campuses, the campus appeals have a collective goal of $5.5 million. The foundation intends to engage communities across Nova Scotia served by the college, with priorities set locally and funds raised staying at those campuses." 10/24/17

Daily Bread, one of Canada's largest food banks, getting new CEO next year (CBC) TORONTO STORYCongrats to Neil and to Daily Bread. "One of Canada's largest food banks is getting a new CEO. Toronto-based Daily Bread Food Bank's current executive director, Gail Nyberg, is retiring after leading the organization since 2005 — and Neil Hetherington, the current CEO of Dixon Hall Neighbourhood Services CEO, has been named the new CEO." 10/23/17

Calgary YMCA Now Outfitting Rocky Ridge Recreation Facility (Skyrise Calgary) CALGARY STORYWe honoured to have been able to help YMCA Calgary, in a small way, to build this tremendous legacy for Calgarians. Congrats YMCA Calgary! BTW, these photos are stunning. "The City of Calgary published a series of photos in the spring highlighting the construction progress of the GEC Architecture-designed Rocky Ridge Recreation Facility at the northwestern edge of the city. On October 20, the City-owned facility was handed over to the Calgary YMCA in advance of the organization's move into the space." 10/23/17

The Remai Modern is complete — but will they come? (CBC) SASKATOON STORYI am going. As often as I can. "Nestled on the shoreline of the South Saskatchewan River, a 130,000-square-foot building constructed of metal and glass is a statement. It's an impressive structure and one the City of Saskatoon hopes will anchor its downtown river development, River Landing." 10/20/17

Homeless youth program finds permanent housing with $400K donation (Fort McMurray Today) FORT MCMURRAY STORY"A $400,000 donation will help keep a roof over the heads of youth and family crisis services in Fort McMurray. On Tuesday, Inter Pipeline gave the donation to Wood’s Homes - a Calgary-based mental health centre. The charity has been renting a home in Dickinsfield since 2009 for homeless youth, in partnership with the Stepping Stones Youth Home Advisory Committee." 10/20/17

Edmonton submits proposal to house new Amazon headquarters (Global News) EDMONTON STORY"Edmonton is officially in the running to become home to Amazon’s next headquarters. Brad Ferguson, president of the Edmonton Economic Development Corporation, said the EEDC had formally submitted its application ahead of [the] deadline." 10/19/17

New student residence to be constructed at Red Deer College (Red Deer Express) RED DEER STORY"Student at Red Deer College are getting some new digs. Officials from Red Deer College, the provincial government as well as the City and neighbouring communities gathered [...] for the announcement of a new residence which will include 145 studio suites. The cost of the project is $19 million, with a $16 million loan coming from the provincial government, to assist with financing of the project." 10/19/17

Order of Excellence honours eight Albertans who work for greater good (Edmonton Journal) ALBERTA STORYCongratulations to this very deserving group. "The most prestigious honour in the province was bestowed [earlier this month] upon eight Albertans [...]. The Alberta Order of Excellence investiture ceremony held at Government House honoured Steve Allan of Calgary, Gary Bowie of Lethbridge, Dr. Anne Fanning Binder of Edmonton, Marie Gordon of Edmonton, Rev. James Holland of Edmonton, Steve Hrudey of Canmore, Vivian Manasc of Edmonton and David Weklund of Calgary." 10/19/17

Women still struggle for seat at boardroom table, report finds (CBC) CANADIAN STORYWe have to do better. And we have to do it faster. "Even in 2017, it is still rare to find women in British Columbia's executive boardrooms, according to a report examining the executive make-up of the province's top 50 companies. The annual scorecard, conducted by Minerva BC, an organization that promotes women in business, looks at diversity at 50 of B.C.'s top-grossing companies." 10/18/17

Olds College Announces New Vice President of Development (Olds College) OLDS STORYCongrats to Olds College and to Patrick. "October 18, 2017, Olds, Alberta: Olds College is pleased to announce Patrick Machacek has been selected as the new Vice President, Development. As the College’s senior representative responsible for fundraising and government relations, Patrick will oversee the Olds College $40 million dollar Beyond Campaign." 10/18/17

Calgary to have Canada's fastest growing economy this year, Conference Board says (CBC) CALGARY STORYGood news! Finally. "Alberta's economy is bouncing back, according to a new report that forecasts Calgary will be the fastest growing metropolitan area in Canada this year. The Conference Board of Canada's latest report, Metropolitan Outlook: Autumn 2017, found Calgary's GDP is on track to increase by 4.6 per cent this year, making it the fastest growing Canadian city among the 13 economies studied." 10/17/17

The $27 million pitch: Why donors contributed to Remai Modern (Saskatoon Star Phoenix) SASKATOON STORYSome great insights in this article. Congrats to the Remai Modern. "Here’s something everybody already knows: Art takes imagination. But so does writing a substantial cheque for a gallery that hasn’t been built yet [...]. If you’re raising money for an X-ray machine for a hospital, everybody knows what you’re talking about. When you’re standing in a board room in front of 20 skeptical executives who think a gallery is just a place to hang paintings, it’s another matter." 10/18/17

Cold hard facts

The State of Donor Retention in One Image (bloomerang) Based on data from the Fundraising Effectiveness Project, here is picture that is truly worth a thousand words. Jay Love also weighs in with his 1000 words. Powerful. 10/18/17

The History of the Ampersand (The Black Lion Banner) This is cool. In ViTreo's style guide, we recommend not using the ampersand in our professional writing. With its resurgence, we might need to revisit this. 10/15/17

What If No One Could Ever Get Fired? (Liberationist Blog) Despite the provocative title, this article is actually about why psychological safety makes or breaks a team. Required reading in my book. 9/29/17

Opinion

Is philanthropy driven by the human desire to cheat death? (Aeon) An interesting motivation. "In Socialism for Millionaires (1896), the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw quipped that a rich man ‘does not really care whether his money does good or not, provided he finds his conscience eased and his social status improved by giving it away’. Was he right to be so cynical?" 10/25/17

Halloween Smile Train Mailing Offends the Parents of the Children It Serves (Nonprofit Quarterly) Not exactly the Halloween story we were looking for. Clearly a direct mail fail. "'What if every day felt like Halloween?' is the heading of a mailer from Smile Train with pictures of children with the cleft lips the organization fixes. 'You have the power to put an end to their nightmare.'" Thanks to Larissa Groch for sharing this story. 10/18/17

Trends and shifts

21.9% of Canadians are immigrants, the highest share in 85 years: StatsCan (CBC) CANADIAN STORY"The share of immigrants in Canada has reached its highest level in almost a century, according to 2016 census figures released Wednesday.The Statistics Canada data also shows the Indigenous population is growing at more than four times the rate of the non-Indigenous population, reaching nearly 1.7 million in 2016." 10/25/17

BitGive Launches Bitcoin Donation Platform GiveTrack (Bitcoin Magazine) Calling all nerdy philanthropists. "BitGive Foundation, a nonprofit organization, announced the launch of the beta version of GiveTrack, a blockchain-based platform that allows donors to donate bitcoin to charitable causes and track those donations in real time." 10/24/17

Facebook moving non-promoted posts out of news feed in trial (The Guardian) While the rhetoric is a little over the top, it is likely that Facebook is definitely moving towards having only promoted posts interfere with our friends posts in the future. Thanks to Scott Decksheimer for sharing this post. "Facebook is testing a major change that would shift non-promoted posts out of its news feed, a move that could be catastrophic for publishers relying on the social network for their audience." 10/23/17

Full Circle? The Gates Pivot on Education and Where K-12 Philanthropy Is Heading (Inside Philanthropy) "The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation—with the deepest pockets of all among the new hands-on grantmakers—has always straddled the separate worlds of education philanthropy. It's given heavily for charter schools and to fund the broader new K-12 reform infrastructure. But it's also worked very closely with traditional school districts to develop a series a large-scale experiments aimed at improving student outcomes. The results have been famously mixed, as Bill Gates has acknowledged himself [...]. And now it's pivoting once more—embracing, among other things, [...] that locally driven solutions have the best chance of succeeding." 10/23/17

Movember, ice buckets, fun runs and ‘dry’ months: why philanthropy of the body is all the rage (The Conversation) "Donating to a charity used to be no more physically arduous then reaching into your wallet. But it is often a much more demanding process now, or at least it can be. Embodied philanthropy, charitable activity that relies on the body for its core form of engagement, has [...] been growing in popularity. From the mid-1980s, event-style fundraisers capitalised on the new preoccupation with health and fitness to get people running, walking and otherwise moving for a cause." 10/22/17

Turns out, everyone can be a philanthropist (Indiana Philanthropy Alliance) Fantastic resource. "What does the term “philanthropist” mean? Would you consider yourself to be one? What factors influence how and when people give, whether that means volunteering time or donating money? These are the key questions addressed by a new, interactive, online platform from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy called Generosity For Life (http://generosityforlife.org/) makes a compelling case that everyone can be a philanthropist." 10/20/17

Eight-figure donation gets KU Hospital closer to completing tower (Kansas City Star) "The University of Kansas Health System got a pledge of $10 million [...] as part of a $100 million fundraising campaign for a new patient care tower slated to open next month. The gift upped the project’s total pledges to $57.7 million. It came from Cheryl Lockton Williams, whose late husband Jack Lockton died of cancer in 2004. Jack Lockton founded Lockton Companies, the world’s largest private insurance brokerage firm." 10/24/17

Notre Dame promised its largest unrestricted donation yet (NBC) Nice planned gift! "Notre Dame is set to receive their largest unrestricted donation yet. CNBC reports that 1978 alum, Kenneth Ricci, is promising the university $100 million after he dies. The way his donation works, is that Notre Dame will be given a stake in Ricci's family's partnership, which includes his privately held businesses. The university will then be responsible for selling off the assets, where any money over the $100 million donated will go back to the family. The donation is unique in that it lets the university use the funds for whatever it chooses." 10/24/17

Yew Dell Gardens gets anonymous $4 million in its largest donation ever (Courier Journal)"Yew Dell Botanical Gardens near Crestwood in Oldham County has received a $4 million gift from a source who has requested anonymity, with much of the money earmarked for hiring and paying staff and for developing a commercial outlet." The Yew Dell Botanical Gardens is located near Crestwood, Kentucky. 10/24/17

$2 million match donation possible for The Center, biggest in history (SDGLN) "[The] San Diego LGBT Community Center (The Center) shared some exciting news at their 49th Anniversary Gala. Thanks to the generosity of Ron Bowman, with his husband Stan Zukowfsky any donations given to The Center now through December 31 will get a 4:1 increase, bringing the possibility of a fundraising total up to $2 million." 10/22/17

Chris Long of the Philadelphia Eagles to Donate Entire Salary (New York Times) "Chris Long, the Eagles defensive end, will donate his entire salary this season to charity. Long announced [...] that he would send his last 10 game checks to educational charities in the three cities where he has played, Philadelphia, St. Louis and Boston. This season he said his first six checks would go to to scholarships at a private school in his hometown, Charlottesville, Va. Long, 32, is to make a base salary of $1 million this season." 10/19/17

Vermont university gets $1M donation for new arena (Bangor Daily News) "The University of Vermont says it has received a $1 million donation pledged for construction of a new multipurpose arena. UVM Board of Trustees Chair David Daigle and his wife Beth made the pledge. The Burlington Free Press reports the couple’s gift will be directed toward facilities to enhance student health and wellness on campus." 10/19/17

University of Akron receives $20 million donation from Hower descendant (Akron Beacon Journal) "Jean Hower Taber spent her lifetime volunteering and donating to worthwhile causes. Even after her death, she’s still giving back. The University of Akron announced [...] that her estate has donated more than $20 million to the school — the largest gift ever received by the university." 10/19/17

Temporary mental health assessment unit approved for RUH (Saskatoon Star Phoenix) SASKATOON STORYCongrats to Saskatoon and the RUH Foundation. Thank you to the Dubé family. "People needing urgent mental health care in Saskatoon will soon have access to a new unit while being assessed at the Royal University Hospital emergency department. The Saskatoon Health Region is establishing a temporary mental health assessment unit in Saskatoon thanks to a $1-million donation from the Dubé family through the Royal University Hospital Foundation." 10/18/17

$4 million donation to create new Native American center (The Collegian) "South Dakota State University President Barry Dunn announced a $4.1 million plan to support the Wokini Initiative, a program focused on increasing and supporting Native American enrollment at the university [...]. Two anonymous donors contributed $4 million for the creation of a new American Indian Student Center (AISC) and a one-time $100,000 donation for scholarships for students from the nine Native American tribes of South Dakota." 10/18/17

Howard E. Butt Jr. family makes $1M donation to aid hurricane recovery (NBC) "Representatives from H-E-B presented a $1 million donation [...] to support Hurricane Harvey relief efforts along the Gulf Coast. Barbara Dan Butt, and her three children, Howard Butt III, Stephen Butt and Deborah Dan Butt Rogers joined together in a personal contribution to the Coastal Bend Disaster Recovery Group Fund in honor of their husband and father, Howard E. Butt Jr., who passed away last year."10/18/17

Marquette's School of Dentistry receives largest donation yet (Milwaukee Business Journal) "A Marquette University School of Dentistry alumnus has pledged a $5 million estate gift to the dental school — the largest donation in the school's history so far. The planned donation, which will be used to support scholarships for veterans and their families, will be contributed by Dr. Paul Andrews, who graduated from Marquette's dental school in 1974." 10/17/17

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